World’s most liveable city is Melbourne1:31

The Economist Intelligence Unit has ranked Melbourne the world’s most liveable city for the seventh consecutive year.

August 16th 2017

2 years ago

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Melbourne was ranked number four on the City Life Index. Picture: @supernormal_180/InstagramSource:Supplied

CHICAGO has been ranked the best city in the world for the second year in a row, according to a study by Time Out.

The Windy city beat out New York, London and Melbourne for the top spot on Time Out’s City Life Index, which rates cities based on factors such as food, drink, culture, affordability and happiness. Some 15,000 people from 32 cities across the world were surveyed, and Chicago came out on top thanks to its “outstanding food and bar scene”.

Chicago was ranked the best city in the world on the Time Out City Life Index. Picture: IstockSource:istock

The City Life Index showed that 89 per cent of Chicago dwellers are happy overall, while 91 per cent said they love their city. The only area Chicago fell short, according to the Index, was safety. This is not surprising given the city’s high homicide rate.

According to Forbes, on average 12 people are shot in Chicago every day, and it had more murders than New York and Los Angeles combined in 2016.

In 2017, 3457 people were shot and 650 murdered in the highly ranked city.

Meanwhile, the city of Porto in Portugal came in second place and was named the most liveable city, followed by New York, which was popular for its night-life and culture.

Porto in Portugal was ranked number two on the City Life Index. Picture: iStockSource:Supplied

New York took out third place thanks to its great night-life. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied

Closer to home, Melbourne took out fourth place, topping the happiness scale (nine out of 10 said they had felt happy in the past 24 hours) and winning points for its bar and restaurant scene (80 per cent of Melburnians rated it outstanding).

The Index also found that it was easy to make friends in the Aussie city, and that Melbourne residents exercise more than those in other cities.

In comparison, Sydney was a long way down the list, at number 28, while Bondi, Bondi Beach and Bondi Junction were voted the most overrated neighbourhoods in the harbour city.

Melbourne topped the happiness scale and also scored points for its bar and restaurant scene. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied

In fifth place was London, with 86 per cent of locals saying there was always something to do in the city, from theatre to bars and restaurants to night-life.

James Manning, City Life editor of Time Out, said: “This year’s Time Out City Life Index reveals the urban hot spots that are unbeatable right now, and the detailed results provide a fascinating look at how people make the most of city life in 2018.

Londoner like to go out, according to the survey. Picture: Tiana TemplemanSource:Supplied

“Chicago, Porto, NYC, Melbourne and London are this year’s top five — a list that shows how different, diverse and unique great cities can be,” he said, suggesting people go visit these top cities.

“They really should be on everyone’s travel bucket list for this year, along with many other cities in our global ranking.”